


Your Selection

by SpideychelleCarwheelerTrash



Category: Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
Genre: F/M, Ficlet, Short & Sweet, Spideychelle, Spideychelle FIclet, i watched Zendaya sing Let Me Love You with Mario, it gave me feelings
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-02
Updated: 2018-06-27
Packaged: 2019-05-17 08:49:32
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,654
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14829146
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SpideychelleCarwheelerTrash/pseuds/SpideychelleCarwheelerTrash
Summary: Prom season has finally arrived, and the students at Midtown are not immune to all of the drama and excitement that comes with it. Peter's junior class is thrilled to be attending for the first time. People are pairing off to buy tickets a month in advance, and the ones who are in relationships have a new commitment to make to the dance.This year, that includes Michelle Jones.Peter does not know what he feels as he realizes exactly what this means, but as MJ is pulled further away from the trio they worked so hard to form, he knows it feels wrong. What feels even worse is watching MJ change without them for someone who takes her for granted... And then some. But it is not his place to say anything about her relationship. If it makes her happy, then it is his job to respect it.However, each day brings Midtown closer to prom, and each day mounts tensions higher. How much pressure can Peter and MJ's relationship take until it snaps in two?





	1. 30 Days Until Prom

**Author's Note:**

> //This fic is inspired by Mario's song "Let Me Love You," featuring Zendaya. If you haven't, you should definitely pop over and give it a quick listen, and then enjoy! ;)

**Song of the Chapter: "[Scared](https://open.spotify.com/track/4zKqkvPSeOa2918BlJJkKH)" by Zendaya**

* * *

 

**30 Days to Prom**

* * *

 

"MJ, that's absolutely disgusting," Peter decides, but there is a grin on his lips as he and Ned watch the decathlon captain shovel another forkful of the school's burnt lasagna into her mouth. 

MJ stares him dead in the eyes with a lively gaze as she chews the bite and swallows, letting out an exaggerated sigh of satisfaction when she is done. "I'm sorry, what was that? I couldn't hear you over the sound of me winning that dare," she hums sweetly, setting down the plastic fork. However, after a moment, she begins to blink several times, wrinkling her nose with her lips pursed. "Mmm... Okay... Okay, yeah, that's-" she admits, turning to cough several times as she gags into her napkin. 

Ned lets out a snort of laughter, and Peter grins as MJ takes a minute to regain her composure. "Hey, how are you doing over there, MJ?" Peter asks innocently, earning a glare that he learned a long time ago doesn't actually mean anything. 

"Better than you, Parker," she retorts in a constricted voice. "Your shirt is buttoned wrong, and you guys owe me a quarter pound of tea now." 

Peter's hands fly to the buttons on the front of his flannel shirt, and he lets out a muttered curse as he works to quickly fix them. MJ's specialty is taking note and filing things away, saving them until they work in her favor as quips. She's masterful, he'll give her that. 

MJ tosses Peter a satisfied smirk as she turns to Ned. "Okay, my turn. Hmm..." she pantomimes stroking a beard as she looks at Ned, and his eyes widen in fear.

Before she can do anything too humiliating someone behind Peter clears their throat. Peter's heart sinks, and he and the others turn to face the source of the sound. Peter's eyes find him, the tall blonde with blue eyes and a button-up with rolled up sleeves. The senior's eyes are on MJ, and he offers her a smile, showing off his pearly whites. "Hey, babe," he greets, and Peter has to hold back a wince. Hearing anyone refer to Michelle "I Will Kill You With One Look" Jones as 'babe' feels inherently wrong, but he doesn't say anything.

"Hey," she greets, offering him a smile that looks slightly more tired than it did a moment ago. The smirk suits her better. "We're playing truth or dare. Want to watch Leeds go ask Coach Wilson to prom?" 

Ned's face pales, but Peter knows he doesn't have to worry before the blonde even speaks. "Not really," he hums, casting Peter and Ned a single, dismissive glance. "But speaking of prom, I brought money to buy tickets today." Peter turns to his lunchbox, glancing down at the leftover Thai takeout box. Prom tickets have just gone on sale, and Peter was definitely  _not_ thinking about them until just then. 

"Cool," MJ agrees. "So, wanna talk about it, then? I mean, I don't have a dress yet, but..." 

Tall and handsome sends her a wink, and Peter has to blink back a grimace. "I've always liked you in red," he suggests, his voice smooth and sultry. "Especially when it's tight." Peter is gripping the edge of the table so hard he thinks he might break it, and Ned shoots him a look. He lets go. 

MJ blinks several times. For a moment, a shadow of something flashes across her face, but it is so fast that Peter is uncertain if he really sees it at all. Then, she is saying, "That can definitely be arranged," and the smile is back. 

"Let's talk about it, then," the blonde counters, and he casts a glance towards Peter and Ned. "We're just gonna sit over there," he tells them, gesturing down to the table at the place where MJ used to sit sophomore year, before decathlon and secretly shared interests brought MJ to their side of the table. He stands, walking over with his tray to the far end of their table. 

As soon as he is gone, MJ works on gathering her tray. "Saved by the Lukas, Leeds," she hums. "Don't think I'm going to forget, this isn't over. Not after I ate Satan's Toejam." She stands with her tray, sending the pair of them a smirk that is so much more MJ than anything she has done in the past few minutes. "Later, losers." And then she is walking away, going to sit across from Lukas. He starts talking immediately, and MJ nods and hums, but Peter watches as her hands slip the book out of her messenger bag from under the table. She is the master of reading in a way that makes it look like she is paying attention. 

She never does that with them. 

Ned is talking about the three's plans for that evening, but Peter is definitely not paying attention. He has turned his gaze down to the Thai food in front of him and is picking at it, trying not to think about the distance between themselves and MJ that feels so wrong. 

* * *

 

"Do you think it's over?" 

Peter looks up at Ned from where he is crouching by the DVD player, pressing the buttons manually because he definitely lost the remote. "What?" he asks slowly, pressing play. "Dude, I literally just put it in. It hasn't even started." 

"I'm not talking about that," Ned counters, and his face is unusually solemn for someone who is about to marathon Star Wars. Peter's heart sinks, and he knows what Ned is talking about. 

MJ mentioned seventh hour that she wasn't going to be able to make it that evening for tea shopping and Star Wars, and they both stared at her like another head had sprouted out of her curly ponytail. She had rolled her eyes and said, "I need to go find a dress for prom so I'm not doing it last minute, and Lukas wants to come, too. But he can't do any other afternoons for a while, so I have to do tonight. You can bring it to school tomorrow. A quarter pound of jasmine pearl loose leaf, losers. We'll pick up where we left off tomorrow, Leeds." 

They had gone to buy the tea, but the store felt different when they went without MJ. It was sort of like being at school after it closed, or standing in the middle of an empty parking lot. The place was open and available, but it was empty, and it wasn't serving its purpose. They had bought the tea, and Peter had purchased some "flowering tea" at the suggestion of the owner, as well as a glass teapot to put it in. He wasn't really sure what compelled him to do, but it was just the sort of quirky, off-beat thing that MJ likes. Now, they are sitting on the couch, just the two of them, for the first time in at least three months. Sure, they had done the studying thing just the two of them, but never movies. She is always there to point out the goofs in anachronism and to throw out tidbits of trivia that neither Ned nor Peter knows.

The armchair she always occupies is empty now. 

"Is it over now?" Ned repeats, and Peter winces. 

"I don't know," he admits as the credits roll and the black, starry sky fills the TV screen. "I mean, she's with someone. It's different." 

"It shouldn't be," Ned grumbles as he glares at the rolling letters, not even bothering to read them aloud the way he always does. "She's our friend." 

"I mean, she isn't really  _our_ anything," Peter carefully responds. "She can do what she wants, and if we're really friends, we should trust her." 

"It isn't her who's the problem, it's him," Ned mutters. "He's a... a jerk." His tone is built up venomously but finishes lamely when he realizes he doesn't have an insult prepared. He isn't MJ. 

"She chose him," Peter mutters, staring at the TV. "We're almost adults, so she's old enough to make her own decisions. If she chose him, she must have a reason." 

For a moment, they are both silent as they watch Darth Vader walk onscreen. When Ned speaks next, it is so quiet that Peter almost misses it. 

"I know we don't, like, own her," he says quietly. "I mean, she's only been doing this stuff with us for a couple months. But... It feels like it's been forever. And I love you, man, but I don't know if I want to go back to just the two of us. Having her here is better than being the guy in the chair." 

Peter blinks, and then he is looking at Ned. "Yeah," he sighs softly. "Yeah. But I mean, maybe it's just the one time. When prom is over, everything can go back to normal." 

"I hope so," Ned mutters. "Because it doesn't feel like it." 

It doesn't feel like it to Peter, either, but he tries not to think about it as he watches the scene fade out into darkness.  


	2. 27 Days Until Prom

MJ makes a point of not looking at the dress that is spread out on her bed as she stumbled around her room Monday morning. The red, slinky gown makes her more confused than anything, really, almost as much so as the unopened makeup on her dresser does.  _Awfully expensive confusion,_ she muses dully as she slides on a bomber jacket. She glances at the pair of skinny jeans that she bought yesterday after Lukas mentioned how good she would look in them. 

She starts to pull them on. They practically give her claustrophobia; they are tight and restrict her movement, and MJ doesn't like them. But Lukas does, she reminds herself as she combs her hair back into its signature ponytail.

A few weeks ago, MJ would not have been caught dead in these pants. She hated skinny jeans and the fashion industry in general, and Leeds and Parker could testify to the amount of ranting she did regarding the disgusting way that women's clothing is sexualized by male designers. But, she tries to rationalize, she also believed she should be allowed to wear what she wants, so long as there are options for everybody's choice.

Deep down, MJ knows that her choice would be not to wear the jeans.

MJ's mom is already at work, so she leaves the house empty when she goes. Lukas has offered to drive MJ to school every day, but she prefers to walk. It is the only real alone time she gets, because once she gets to school she feels like Lukas is everywhere. That isn't the worst thing, but MJ is also majorly introverted and he and his friends are loud. The walk to school gives her time to mentally prepare for them.

She never has to do that for Parker and Leeds.

MJ winces as she walks into the school building while remembering the way that they looked at her yesterday when she said she could not be there for movie night. They were going to be marathoning Star Wars and had probably had a great time without her. She had gone shopping instead and wasted time trying on dresses with heels that made her feet hurt.

"MJ!" calls Leeds from behind her, and immediately she can feel herself perking up. She turns, and Leeds and Parker have just stopped mid-discussion by the lockers. Leeds has a hopeful expression in his eyes, and Parker offers her a smile. "How are you?" Ned prompts.

"I'm awake at seven in the morning, so take a wild guess," she quips, but her face is relaxed and her eyes are doing a very poor job of hiding her pleasure. MJ turns and begins to open her locker, and Leeds and Parker move to stand by her.

"Hey, whoa," Ned says suddenly. "What are you wearing?"

Her face burns as she struggles to keep her poker face. Unfortunately, that is a bit hard to do with Peter leaning on the locker beside her with wide eyes fixed on her face. "A bomber jacket."

"No, not that-" Ned fumbles. He appears shaken, as though he is questioning the foundation of all that he knows.

"Are you wearing... Skinny jeans?" Peter asks slowly in a hesitant voice. MJ sees him glance at them, and his face turns red as he quickly looks away. MJ is having a hard time fighting back the butterflies in her stomach. Pretty soon, she'll need a damn fly swatter for them.

"I wanted to try them out," MJ replies cooly as she grabs her AP Chem book. "How was the marathon?"

Peter seizes on the topic like he is a starving man and she has offered him a Hot Pocket. "It was great!" he exclaims, visibly relieved. "We got through all three of the originals, but we decided that if we wanted to watch the first three, you need to be there to make fun of them with us. Want to come over soon, maybe tonight?"

"May is ordering in, so if you bring a few bucks you can get your Pad Thai," Ned adds.

There is a warm, floating feeling in MJ's chest that she doesn't want to think about. She knows now that they missed her and they actually care, and it makes her whole body feel tingly. However, what she says is, "Yeah, sure. I'll join your lame marathon, but only if I'm allowed to cuss out Anakin Skywalker." There is something between a smirk and a grin on her face, and then they're all smiling conspiratorily.

"Only after May's asleep," Peter barters.

"Deal, but you know she would do it with me," MJ reasons. "She hates him even more than I do."

"Speaking of things May hates," Ned interected, "we brought you your tea."

Yes," MJ cheers, shooting Ned a grin. "And don't think you're getting out of your promposal to Wilson, Leeds. I want to film the whole thing.

He groans softly and looks up to the heavens as if he is praying for mercy.

Peter reaches into his bag and pulls out the container of loose leaf tea, marked with the logo of her favorite shop. She opens it and takes a deep breath, and it smells absolutely heavenly. It is only when she looks up at Parker that she realizes he is holding two more boxes. "This is perfect," she informs them. "What's that, Parker? Have I fanlly converted you from your adoration of the heathen coffee bean?"

"No, I will always remain devoted to my pagan ways," Peter replies with a grin. MJ has to admit that over the past few months, his delivery of sarcasm has gotten much better. "Um, actually..." Peter hands them over to her, and MJ sets the container of tea in her open locker to take the boxes. "I asked the shopkeeper about them, and he said that this kind of tea is really cool. It's... Deflowering tea?"

MJ snorts, and he turns red. "Nope, but you know what, close enough."

"Yeah, well, I tried. It was something about flowers," he mutters with a nervous grin. "But he says it looks cool if you put it in a glass teapot, so I got you one. I thought that it would be something cool for you to blog about."

It is MJ's turn to become flustered as she looks down at the gifts, and she feels a smile creep onto her cheeks. MJ hates the vulnerability of it, but she is more flattered than she should be. She doesn't like to show much emotion; she's gotten good at hiding the way that she feels. But he thought about her and asked to make sure she would like this. She hasn't done the whole "friend" thing before Leeds and Parker, but if this is what it is like, then she's not sure she wants to go back.

"You really didn't have to," she hums, glancing down at the pot and tea again before she raises her gaze to Peter. He looks as uncertain as she does, and then she says, "But thanks. I love it."

"Whoa," Ned says, only half joking. "Better go make sure you're not possessed or something, because I'm pretty sure you just went for five whole minutes without hiding behind your sarcasm."

MJ wrinkles her nose at him. "Wow, the roles have reversed. You can expect Parker's prepubescent voice cracks to set in for you any minute, Leeds, and I'm gonna need to borrow that fedora."

Both boys shoot her a look that she returns with a serene smile. It is only then that someone clears their throat from behind her, and MJ stiffens.

"Hey, baby," Lukas's voice hums in her ear, and his hands come to rest low on her hips. "You look great in those."

Peter blinks like a deer in headlights, and Ned glances over at him and groans. He shakes his head as he mutters. "We'll see you in class." Then, he tugs on Parker's arm to leave Lukas and MJ alone. MJ wishes they would stay.

MJ feels Lukas's hands on her waist, and most of her wants him to take them off. But then, a nasty little cluster of thoughts nags at the back of her mind. Lukas wants to touch her, and MJ isn't the type of girl that guys want to touch. If he doesn't touch her, who else will ever want to? As much as she pretends, Michelle Jones isn't immune to the desire to be seen as beautiful, or to be loved. She's not a psychopath, no matter how many times Flash suggests it.

Instead of pushing Lukas away, she lets his thumbs rub against her hips in a way that sends a jolt into her stomach.

"So," he says, "how was your weekend?"

"It was okay," she replies noncommittally.

He lets go of her and moves to lean where Peter was, and his eyes find the tea in her hands. "What's that?" he asks curiously.

MJ's mind races and she does not know why she replies the way that she does. "Oh, just some stuff I left at school on Friday," she answers. The lie tingles on her lips as it meets the air, but MJ has a perfect poker face with Lukas.

Lukas does not say anything, only nods and launches off into some talk about Friday's football game. MJ is off in a whole other world, just thinking.

_Why had she lied?_

It was perfectly fine for Peter to give her a gift. They're friends. So why did she feel the need to fib about it to her boyfriend? She doesn't need to unless there's some extra meaning attached to the present, which there isn't.

Unless she is putting it there.


	3. 26.5 Days Until Prom

When the end of the day comes, Peter is more than ready to go home. Their wood shop class completely numbed up his mind, and he is looking forward to having some stimulating conversation and Star Wars banter to massage his brain back to life. Ned is waiting by his locker at the end of the day, and Peter watches as his best friend’s face light up.

“Hey!” Ned greets cheerfully. “Guess what?” Before Peter has a chance to answer, Ned is rattling forward. Unbothered, Peter opens his locker and slides a few books into their places, leaving his backpack lighter and his books organized. “Betty actually talked to me today. I mean, it was about the project we have due on Friday, but like, she didn’t seem bored. And after she asked me about my shirt! I had to, like, explain basically  _all_ of  _Star Trek_ for her to get the reference, but you know. She even laughed and stuff!” 

A grin spreads across Peter’s face, and he nods. “That’s great, man!” he exclaims, turning to lean against his locker so that they can wait for MJ. “Hey, at this rate, maybe by the time you’re thirty you’ll actually have asked her out.” 

Ned doesn’t seem bothered by the comment. Rather, he takes on a lofty attitude, saying, “Hey, don’t joke, man. You gotta take your time, make sure that you give her a while to realize she’s into you, then  _that’s_ when you make your move-” 

“-and then you wake up and realize that you’re still a nerd with no balls,” MJ’s serene voice finishes from behind Ned. Though her tone is as lofty as ever, both Peter and Ned have learned to tell when she’s joking, and based upon the way that one corner of her mouth is quirked upwards, she doesn’t mean it. Peter doesn’t know why, but he straightens up and tugs lightly at his collar at her approach, and he can’t stop a grin from crossing his face. 

Ned makes a face and shoots her a look. “Come on, man! Is it so hard to believe that I could actually ask someone out?” 

“I would like to be able to say no, but you don’t exactly have to best history with things that put you under pressure,” she replies as she quickly opens her own locker. Peter watches as MJ takes the massive pile of books in her hands and shoves them into the locker, shoving it shut before they can all fall out on her. 

“I don’t know what you’re talking ab-” 

“Last week, you squeaked when the toaster popped and you didn’t expect it. The  _toaster.”_

Ned’s face turns red, but he tries to look stubborn. “That’s a perfectly legitimate reaction!” 

“Then you unplugged it, and kept doing that every time we went back there for days.” 

Peter lets out a small huff of laughter, and a grudging smile crosses Ned’s lips. “Whatever. Can we just go? I want pizza.” 

“I agree with that sentiment,” MJ pipes up, turning to look at Peter for confirmation. For a moment, her dark gaze catches him off-guard, but he quickly nods. 

“R-right, um, yeah! Yeah, we can order it on the phone on the walk home.” 

“I want sausage,” Ned announces as they begin to walk. “And onions.” 

“And remember,” MJ reminds as she falls into step with Ned. “Half has to be-”

“Mushroom, spinach, and full tomato slices,” Peter finishes as he pulls out his phone, grinning slightly. “I know. You’re not exactly the most unpredictable.” 

MJ looks affronted, but Peter can tell she’s hiding a grin. “Excuse you, I am not predictable.” 

“You wear, like, the same three hoodies on repeat with that jacket thrown in there every once in a while,” he responds, not looking up as he selects the number for the pizza place. 

It is Ned’s turn to let out a little snort of laughter, and Peter hears her mumble of, “Yeah, whatever, loser.” But it’s comfortable, this trio of theirs, and the walk home is relaxed even though Peter spends most of it on the phone while Ned and MJ compete over who can kick an empty beer can farther down the sidewalk. 

* * *

The pizza has arrived, the movie is rolling, and the smell of MJ’s hot chai tea is mingling with that of tomato sauce in Peter’s living room, the way that it always does when she is here. Peter shouldn’t be on edge, really. He should be paying attention to Ned’s Jar Jar Binks impression, which is absolutely perfect in every way. Normally, it never fails to get a laugh out of Peter. But today, it isn’t working the way that it normally does, and Peter hates it. 

He knows it’s because MJ has been texting furiously for the last twenty minutes. 

As far as Peter can remember, MJ hasn’t ever so much as looked at her phone during a movie night. She doesn’t particularly like her old Blackberry, and it rarely goes off. She comments every so often that the only person who really texts her is her mom, and only about their schedules and the like. If Peter has to guess, however, he doesn’t think that this is her mom. If it was, MJ would hardly have any reason to be letting out the soft, frustrated puffs of breath that she does whenever the phone buzzes again, normally just after she’s set it down.

After a while, Ned picks up on it, too. He glances over when the phone buzzes, then back at Peter as MJ picks it up and starts to type furiously. She only seems to begetting more and more annoyed, and finally after a particularly long time spent typing she sets down the phone with unnecessary force. 

Ned swallows, glancing at Peter before looking back to MJ. “Hey, uh...” he says slowly, trailing off when MJ’s intense, frustrated gaze fixes on him. “You good?” 

“Of course I’m ‘good,’“ MJ mutters, glancing back to the movie. “Why wouldn’t I be good?” Peter and Ned exchange another look as her phone buzzes at that specific moment, and a soft, frustrated exclamation escapes her lips. 

There is a moment of silence, and for a moment all three of them are just looking at one another. 

“Fine,” she mumbles after a moment, letting a long tuft of hair fall in her face. “It’s... It’s this stupid freaking dance.” 

“You mean prom?” Peter asks, raising an eyebrow. “Stupid, freaking prom?” 

“Stupid, freaking prom,” MJ repeats, nodding. “I just... Ugh.” 

Ned looks slightly concerned. “So what exact stupid, freaking thing happened?” 

MJ glares over at her phone. “Lukas said he was paying for the tickets,” she mutters. “I said I could pay for mine, but he was all like, ‘No, I want to pay for my date!’ And I’m an idiot, so I let him, and I ended up spending a little more on a dress than I would have, since I had that extra money I wasn’t spending on a ticket.” 

Peter nods slowly, trying to ignore the sinking feeling he gets in his chest when she says ‘my date.’ MJ isn’t anybody’s anything, but he doesn’t feel like she wants him to point that out right now. 

“And now, he’s texting me saying he  _didn’t_ buy the tickets and used the money to pay for some ‘unexpected thing’ in his stupid tech class, and he’s asking me if I can buy my own ticket.” MJ’s eyes are filled with a peeved irritation, and Peter decides that he is glad he is not on the receiving end of that look. “I  _wouldn’t_ have minded, but now I’m going to have to take on extra shifts to pay for it, and--” She breaks off, running an agitated hand through her hair. “Ew. Now I sound like a stupid, whiny girlfriend. Shoot me, Parker.” 

 _Girlfriend._ Peter rather feels like the one who is getting shot. 

“Nah, that sucks, man,” Ned chimes in, glancing at Peter. “I’d be ticked off.” 

“Yeah, well,” MJ sighs, shaking her head and picking up the phone to shove it in her pocket. “It’s dumb. I guess I probably shouldn’t have said anything anyway, so if you tell anyone I’ll murder you. I think I read something about not talking about being pissed at your partner with anyone but your partner, so I should probably just talk to him. But I’ll do it after I’m doing roasting Anakin to a crisp.” 

Ned laughs, and a little grin spreads across Peter’s lips. Still, it’s small and slightly strained... She’s trying so hard, and she should be, of course. But Peter can feel that little bit of worry inching in again, because she’s drawing closer to Lukas and away from them. It’s stupid and childish to feel that way, but Peter can’t help but feeling like if it were anyone else, he wouldn’t have that issue. 

Because MJ deserves more than being used and inconvenienced. 


End file.
